More Than 425 Lots Of 19TH Century Period American Furniture, Tiffany Studios Pieces And More Will Be Sold October 18 By Fontaine’s, At 11 Am

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The cataloged antique auction is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 28th, at 11 a.m. Eastern time, in Fontaine’s spacious gallery located at 1485 West Housatonic Street in Pittsfield. Headlining the event will be wonderful turn-of-the-century examples from Tiffany Studios in New York, rare antique lamps and lighting by the most coveted names in the field and outstanding 19th century period furniture.

The firm will buy outright or accept on consignment fine antiques, collection or entire estates, call (413) 448-8922 and ask to speak with John Fontaine, or you can send Mr. Fontaine an e-mail, at info@fontainesauction.com.

The cataloged antique auction is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 28th, at 11 a.m. Eastern time, in Fontaine’s spacious gallery located at 1485 West Housatonic Street in Pittsfield. Headlining the event will be wonderful turn-of-the-century examples from Tiffany Studios in New York, lamps and lighting by the most coveted names in the field and outstanding 19th century period furniture.

The furniture will be from makers such as the Herter Brothers, Pottier & Stymus, Thomas Brooks, George Hunzinger, John Jelliff, John H. Belter, Daniel Pabst, Alexander Roux, J. & J.W. Meeks, R. J. Horner, Gustav Stickley, L. & J.G. Stickley and others. Lighting will be by Tiffany Studios, Duffner & Kimberly, Handel, Pairpoint and others. Most of it is fresh to the market.

The auction will also feature marble and bronze statuary, original paintings, cameo glass, art glass, porcelains, pottery, sterling silver, garden urns, leaded windows, estate jewelry items and hundreds of decorative accessories. “We expected this auction to be a good one, but it’s turning into potentially one of our best of the year,” said John Fontaine of Fontaine’s Auction Gallery.

A strong candidate for top lot of the auction is the 14-piece figural carved oak dining room suite by R.J. Horner, in excellent condition and with a beautiful dark brown original finish. The suite includes a 54-inch diameter table with gadroon carved edge, sideboard with large pierce-carved crest, server, china cabinet, six dining chairs and two matching armchairs (est. $40,000-$60,000).

The 5-piece marble-top Renaissance Revival carved walnut bedroom set is in very good original condition and has the furniture retailer tag (“Henry Youthoff, New Orleans”). The set features a queen-size half tester bed with large shaped canopy, a 60 inch by 80 inch mattress, a marble-top well drop dresser, a marble-top full commode and a two-door armoire (est. $14,000-$28,000).

The 22-inch Tiffany Studios banded Dogwood table lamp, on a signed Tiffany Studios (N.Y.) bronze base (No. 531), for an overall height of 30 inches, is expected to garner $25,000-$35,000. The shade, 22 ½ inches in diameter, has a geometric staggered brick background in green striated glass and a lovely 5-inch-high floral dogwood border with each flower having white glass petals.

There’s a vintage automobile in the auction that’s bound to get paddles wagging. It’s a white, beautifully restored 1957 Ford Thunderbird convertible, with just 769.2 miles on the odometer (the mileage since the 312 cubic inch V8 engine was rebuilt three years ago). The showroom quality T-Bird also features power steering and brakes and a recent top (est. $30,000-$40,000).

A 24-inch Royal Vienna painted charger, signed on the reverse with the blue beehive mark and titled The Wave & the Rock, is expected to command $15,000-$25,000. The large charger has a teal blue border that’s decorated with gilt and enamel figural dolphins and swirling filigree. A nude female is shown in a rocky ocean setting while a nude male presents her with a seashell.

In the fine art category, a large (42 ½ inch by 53 inch) original oil on canvas painting attributed to Clarkson Stanfield (Br., 1793-1867), should make $10,000-$15,000. The painting shows a cluster of sailing vessels on a choppy sea, with a small rowboat in the foreground and five sailors tending to a fishing trap. The unsigned work is housed in a large, gilt carved and gesso frame.

A signed Tiffany & Company sterling silver pitcher, 11 inches tall, in excellent condition except for a few very minor surface dings, is expected to hammer for $6,000-$8,000. The high-quality pitcher has a hand-chased and repousse pattern, with mollusk seashells and seaweed throughout. It has pattern #8463, under Edward Moore (circa 1885), and weighs in at 53.9 troy silver ounces.

Returning to furniture, an oak figural carved dining table, 60 inches in diameter with a top that has a beveled edge and leaf carved apron, carries a pre-sale estimate of $15,000-$20,000. The table, in a very good medium brown original finish, has four original leaves and sits on a large, turned split pedestal base with filigree carving and arched splayed stretcher on large claw feet.

A John Henry Belter laminated rosewood marble-top dresser, having a serpentine front and sides with a concave center, should fetch $10,000-$15,000. The 85-inch-tall by 48-inch-wide dresser has four graduated drawers and original white marble top with beveled edge. A large swiveling mirror has an arched top. The finish is original and the piece is heavily carved, top to bottom.

Fontaine’s next big auction after this one is slated for Saturday, Nov. 22nd, also in the Pittsfield gallery, when the firm will conduct an antique clock auction. Horological history could very well be made that day when an exceedingly rare E. Howard & Company No. 47 wall-hanging astronomical regulator comes up for bid. The clock is estimated to bring $200,000-$300,000.

With over 40 years in the auction business, Fontaine’s Auction Gallery is a name that has earned the trust of collectors, investors and gallery owners around the world. All cataloged lots receive nationwide exposure to the firm’s expansive database of more than 18,000 select buyers. Seven times Fontaine’s Auction Gallery has been voted “Best Antique Auction Gallery” by the public.